Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-11-16
SARDINE INDUSTRY.
HOW NiMBlE FINGERS FIX THE LIT.
TILE FISH FOR MARxETs

weirs-Thc factorics-Cuttins, "Flak-
ing Frying and Packing.
Aside from the pleasure one finds in study
ing the incidents Of herring fishing and the
lives and ways of herring fishers there is ex-
traoriinary interest attaching to the great
secondary Industry growing out of herring
fishing itself. Years ago the millions Of us
living away from this little reach of shore
but a spcck upon the enormous distances Of
American and Canadian coast line-had no
better notion of the herring's Importance to
the affairs of life than that gained from
glimpses into unss worry tubs of picked her
ring, or the pungent aroma asserting the
presence of the knotty pine box Of smoked
herring, in the wonderfully miscellaneous
corner groceries of our youthtide. What
ever and however large that trade formerly
was it has almost disappeared. In place Of
it has come one of tremendous Importance, OF
which there is no general knowledge what
ever.
AT Eastport, Lewis Cove Robertson, Lu-
bee, Pembroke, Southwest Harbor, Jones
port, Mill Bridge and Cutler are located be
tween thirty and forty Of these sardine fac
tories. They employ, or partially employ,
April to the middle OF December Every fac
tory is located on the Maine coastwise shore,
in Maine on the shores of Cobscook, Penn
broke and Passarlaquoddy bays, or upon the
Maine shore Of the st. Croix.
SCENES AT THE wEIRs.
Here, then. is the herring fishers home,
and his markc' at home While the latter
gives an ever changing reward, it is never
changing itseN and the fisher, after ALL regu-
lates his own ,mpensation. II the catches
arc bountiful he will sell cheaply, but never
for less than profit. II they are light he
often secures exorbitant compensation, for
the competition is always brisk, and the fac
tories must be kept running. In the year all
Ibis, Us to fisher and factory, adjusts itself
fairly enough. Each factory has its ''boat-
men" These mon, who principally live at
Eastport and Lubec, are graduate quoddy
fishers, They have their qroddy boats and
crews, and their duties are to scurry about
among the weirS and keep their factories sup
piled with herring at tho lowest possible price,
but always supplied.
Wherever factories are located old and
young are employed without distinction in
the various processes Of the work. Regular
employment "by the day is furnished to but
few. nearly all the labor being done "by the
piece" The arrival Of the herring sloops at
all hours of the day and nisht-for the
''catchcs" and consequent buying Of the her
ring are dependent on the ever changing tide
us announced by the shrill whistle Of the
factory. Then the hamlet, which is at every
other hour an apparently deserted village
seems sud lenly repopulated. From every
rsx aud
denly appear erst invisible hosts. The place
seems bewitched and as though all its folk
were mad. Half dressed, frowsy women, bold,
bad boys and the Sauciest, handsomest bare
legged girls you ever beheld, all join in wild
endeavor for precedence. As if by magic
the old shed OF a factory swarms with pant
Ing racers and resounds with the hum of
voices and the merry chatter and clamor Of
welcome toll From the sloops the herrings
ore unloaded t rope and tackle upon the
wharves, one basket at n time, tally being
kept by both the b1atman and the "bOss" Of
the cutting shed.
FILLING THE BOXES
Under the cutting shed are a large number
Of cutting tables, around which are gathered
old and young Of all sorts, though smart
lads are in the majority. The herrings are
dumped upon these tables promscuoasly, and
the cutters spring to their work with wonder
full celebrity, their 'kRiseir assIipc ssayasely,
and every ..clsckf upuu the raised edge Of the
the table completing its work upon one fish.
To the right of each is a box holding about
one-thrd of bushel, and to the left bar
rel Every time the knife desccntis the tail
end of herring flies into the box and the
head and entrails into the barrel. Cutters
are paid about five cents per box for this
work The speed attained by some is re-
markable, and there is no cessation Of effort
until the last herring is disposed Of As fast
as the cutters boxes are filled the fish are
sorted There are two sizes, ''oils' and
'Eustarls,n The former are the smaller.
delicate fish, packed in oil, 100 boxes to the
case, and the latter comprise the large her
ring, preserved in preparations Of French
and German mustard, fifty boxes to the case.
The fish are now transferred to the pick
ling room" and placed in half bogsheads Of
brine, where they remain nearly half hour,
and are then ''flakedn ''Flak!ng" consists of
partially drying the fish. This is done BY
placing the herring in single layers upon
''fakes," about four feet square, made of tri-
angular white beech Stats held together by
light wooden rims. This is done either in
the sun or in gigantic ovens After the fax
inS comes the frying" process. The fish are
piled upon perforated iron or wire screen
like pans two or three tiers deep, when about
a half dozen Of these are Owered into great
caldrons Of boiling oil. Here they remain
for perhaps half an hour. They are then
drained" thoroughly cooled and then con-
veyed to the packing tables. Beside each
packer are great piles of shining boxes
with looscned lids. Small boys CON
stantly pass from table To table saucily
squirting a portion of oil from great cans
into each Of the open boxes Pans of fish are
continually being set before these women
and girls, who handle the delicate morsels
with marvellous dexterity and care. filling o
box and adjusting the lid-im augcnblick. or
the wink Of an eye, as the Germans would
say, for which the average price paid is ten
cents per case or 100 boxes. From this room
of chatter, laughter and toll they are passed
to the sealing room: 500 TO 10000 boxes at
a time are then subjected to a steam, or boil
ing water bath" of about three hours dura-
ton; they are again cooled, then tested
then shoveled back and forth in great banks
Of clean sawdust until the boxes shine like
polished silver and are then cased and ready
for the market, good enough for anybody for
what they really are, but under the more
palatablc Srise Of superlatively superior and
superfiae French" sardines. Edgar l.
Wakeman in Few York Mail and Express